The Betrayal
by BishounoTeresa
Summary: My short fanfic about how Teresa of The Faint Smile became a claymore. Thanks Shelter for the help editing it, and Mikke for the encouragement!


The Betrayal

It was dusk. Everything around the town of Gara and its surroundings seemed quiet. The sun was just setting, coloring the sky in a palette of colors – from gold to bright red, casting its last rays for the day, and as they faded they left bizarre shadows over the landscape.

A slight, but cold breeze was coming from the west, giving chills to the ones who were in its way. The people that were seen on the main road seemed in a hurry, hustling towards the gates, since the curfew was at dusk, and there was valid reason for these tight restrictions: for the townspeople's safety. Even though their town was the closest to the Claymore organization's headquarters, yoma would still roam in the woodlands that surrounded it. It was dangerous to venture into them even during daylight and no one went alone, always in pairs. But folks would still get attacked; they could escape if lucky, but those who went deeper in would rarely come out alive, and some bodies have never been found…

The few walkers were quickening their pace as it was getting darker by the minute, not noticing that something was moving in the bushes near the turn of the road. It watched them from there. A pair of silver eyes could be seen through the leaves scanning everything around. Their attention was caught by a middle-aged woman who was pulling the reins of a mule loaded up with a lot of bags. The animal was suffering under the weight, but its master was just pulling it to go faster, not even thinking to slow down. By the looks of her she seemed like a merchant.

When the woman came to the turn she nearly fell while stepping back as fast as she could from the thing that had startled her by appearing out of nowhere. She found herself staring at a young girl, about 12 years old, dressed in a white suit, no shoes on, with a slim figure, a doll-like face, blond hair tied on a pony tail and shining silver eyes who were staring back at her.Still shocked the woman just kept staring at the girl, she didn't dare to move or even say anything.

The girl spoke first breaking the silence:

"Hey lady, sorry if I scared you, but you seemed like a merchant and I need something to wear so I was wondering if you have some old rags you don't need that I could use?"

"Wh-what? You want me to give you clothes… What for!?" -she stammered,clearly suspicious, her voice shivering."Aren't you from the Claymore people…What are you doing here??!?"

The girl continued to eye her. "You don't need to know about what Just tell me: do you have some clothes you don't need that I can use or not?

"What!? No! I don't!" she snapped. "And even if I did why would I give them to you – you people take those high fees, almost blackmailing us to kill off the yoma, and now you come around and ask me to give you free clothes!?!

"Just get lost! Get out of my sight! Go back to that damned place your organization, where you freaks are made!"

Her face flushed and red with indignation, the merchant woman spat violently at the girl who, despite the abuse, did not let any emotion show in her features

"Fine. I'll get out of your way. I won't want you to reach home late,right?" said the girl with a grin on her face. She turned and started walking back in to the woods.

Just as she was about to step in and get out of sight she turned back, and with an almost imperceptible smile said to the woman who was still standing, transfixed:

"Don't trouble yourself. We won't be a bother anymore…or our high fees. We _freaks_ don't go where we aren't paid." She added an extra emphasis on the next sentence. "And I'LL make sure that is known at the organization that this town is dissatisfied with our taxes, so we won't give you trouble. YOU deal with the yoma however you like from now on."

The girl stood there for a moment, the glare in her eyes malicious, like that of an animal about to tear it's victim to pieces, before walking on and disappearing in to the woods.

And the merchant woman's face paled, an expression of utter dread coming over it as the girl's figure retreated into the trees.

"_Tch, damn that old hag! And they say we are the mean ones."_ The girl mused,frowning. "_Damn humans are no better than us or yoma… just weaker! That's why they_ _use us, those bastards at the Organization make us like this. Curse them all! This time I'll get away for sure, this time for sure…" _

The young claymore was walking fast towards the river where she had breaked during the day. Her thoughts were running wild though she was trying to calm down. The reaction of the woman she stoped by the road brought back memories, bitter ones of how she was treated before. And comparing to how she was treated now made her feel as if she was lower than the vermin crawling on the ground.

The once called sweet little girl, was now a monster. She never wanted to be called "sweet" or anything, but at least they were treating her like a normal girl before, a normal human being. Now she was one of the outcasts from everywhere – a half-human, half-yoma, who was feared and despised by both humans and yoma. The normal life she once had was gone – now she had nothing – no possessions or dreams.

She didn't want anything more except to get away from this – this _Organization_. They made her like this, and though they were human, she would hardly call them "people". THEY were the ones more like monsters – the things they did, all those lives they had ruined like hers. It wasn't just her, it was the same for every warrior or trainee; no one ever knocked on the organizations door willingly, orphans were taken or sold there, to die as a beggar or become a tool of the Organization. There was not much choice when the people she trusted betrayed and sold her.

It was four years ago. Her memory of that day burned vividly in her head asifithappened yesterday.**  
**

It was sunny. The kids were playing outside. The dog was running around in the yard.

As they walked into the kitchen their father – a man in his 30s with jet black hair – smiled. But his eyes, traced the little girl with the same features, as she passed him and sat on the table for lunch. Although she was still very young, by the looks of her doll like lineaments, her long hair falling on waves down to the waist, her graceful movements and slim figure, he could tell she would later on grow into a beautiful woman. One worth praising in songs and poetry sung by bards.

He let out a deep sigh as he got up to help his wife as she was preparing the meal. His wife looked at him with her piercing green eyes and whispered:

"Dean, are we really going to do this?"

The man looked back at her, determined, but replied with dread in his eyesand an uneasy voice:

"We have no other choice," he said bluntly, "we can't afford to take care of another person…"

"But she is your brother's daugh…" started the woman. She was cut off in mid-sentence.

"I know who she is. But as much as I care for her, although she is his daughter we can't take care of her. Times are hard, the crop this year was poor, we have barely enough for us and the kids. There is no way we can keep her. Koul and Kail are still too young to work, and even if they were older, a girl is no good in farm work, so she would still be useless. We can't hope to marry her for someone from the village since her parents were killed by yoma, and now everyone is scared of her. We have no other choice but to…"

"…To sell her to those people from the claymore organization?" said his wife, before he could finish. "Why do we have to give her to _them_? You know what they'll do to her. Why can't we sent her in some school or to work in a tailor shop so she could learn the craft to work, or somewhere else she could learn to work? Why does it have to be those people…"

He saw tears gathering in his wife's eyes.

"No one would take her… she's the survivor of the yoma. People even think SHE is a yoma because of that. Those from the claymore Organisation…they would gladly take her, they lack manpower right now, and they're looking for healthy children …and… they're willing to pay good money for them…"

"…so…when are they going to come for…"

"This afternoon, a black cloak is coming to take her."

The two looked at each other for a while silently, then got back to the table and sat to eat, after that they continued with their daily routines, waiting for the time to come. Meanwhile the little girl with jet black hair and eyes that sparkled in the sunlight was sitting in front of the fireplace, playing with the 2 boys who were not much older than her, they both had black hair, but their eyes were green like their mothers.

She could hear the words her uncle and aunt spoke. They must have been serious about something. But she did not know what they meant.She did not have any idea why her uncle was in such a bad mood. Or why her aunt started crying when she said to her that her lunch was great. She did not suspect anything.

What was going to happen that day would change her life forever.

A couple of hours later someone knocked on the door. The guest was invited in the living room, and as he came in, not a word was spoken. He sat patiently, and introduced himself as Orsai, one of the "handlers" of the warriors of the Organization.

He left on the table a little bag with money, and said, "This is the promised sum we talked about before. So if you don't mind I'm in a hurry, bring her and we can go."

"You will take care of her right?" asked the woman as she stood up. Worrywasetchedalloverherface.

"As a handler I keep an eye on the ones I bring in," said Orsai with an emotionless face.

"Go bring her, but let her say goodbye to her cousins first," said Dean as he was putting away the money.

The woman left the room and came back a few minutes later with the little girl who had a surprised expression on her face. "Where are we going uncle?" she asked as she stared at the man's black eyes, the same as hers.

"Your going to go to your new…_home_…, umh, this here is Orsai and he's going to take you there now. Come on don't make him wait…"

"But I don't want to go! I have a home here with you!" cried the little girl as she clenched her fists, with an unwavering look on her face.

"I'm sorry but you have to go…"

"Why!?! I want to stay here!" she started shouting while on the verge of tears. "Why can't I stay here with you? You're my family now! I have no one else Iwant to stay with but you! Please uncle, I promise I won't make trouble again and I'll do my chores from now on, so let me be with you, I just want to be with you forever, I don't need anything else!"

"I wish it was that simple, but it's not," said Dean. He sighed as he pet herhair. He then took her hand and gave her to the man in black cloak.

As she was crying Orsai dragged her out and into the cart he came with. While they were moving away she turned to see for the last time her uncle and his family as they stood at the gate of the yard. Even though she was getting farther and farther away, shecould swear she heard her uncle say, "goodbye Teresa" just as she turned to look away.

They arrived at the Organization in the middle of the night. Teresa was brought to the "bedrooms". They were more like prison cells, with bars instead of walls and doors. She was given a suit the same as the others and was given a meal, and on the next day it happened…with no warning the terrified little girl was pulled out of her cell and taken to the basement. To the "operation room". After that everything was a blur.

Waking up from the strong pain all over her body, mostly in the chest, Teresa opened her eyes and finding herself back in her cell She lay on the bed for some time, then got up and went to get a glass of water. The movements were causing her unbearable pain, but she was so thirsty she didn't care, as she got to the sink she leaned on it, her feet weren't able to hold her up, she felt so tired and that pain in the chest…and then she happened to look at the mirror…shock was written all over her face…she didn't recognize the person she saw there…her black hair was gone, she was now blond, and her eyes…they were no longer black and sparkling, instead they were cold and silver, inhuman…

And so was she from that point on.

Not realizing when she got there, Teresa found herself sitting by the river. She was still dwelling into her memories when she felt it: someone else was there!

It was so faint she could barely feel the yoki, but its presence filled the forest. _I have to go see, if it's a warrior she could feel me too, or it might be a yoma,_ she thought.

As she got closer she saw a woman leaning over the water. She cradled the springwater and cleansed her face with it.

Teresa made a few more steps and said, "Hey sis are you a normal human?"

The woman got up and turned around. A huge scar dominated the entire left side of her face. And a stunning, shining silver eye on the right stared back at her…


End file.
